Birthday:July 1st 1997Likes:Tennis balls and dog cookies. Hamburger patties with cheese.Pet-Peeves:Loud noises, her "people" being upset or crying, being unable to get to her "people" if they're hurt.Favorite Toy:Tennis balls.Favorite Food:Pedigree Adult dog food with gravy from Mom's German biscuits and gravy recipe.Favorite Walk:Anywhere the kids are going. Great off-leash skills.Best Tricks:Shake, Comfort (sit in front of upset person and place paw on their knee).Arrival Story:My parents bought Samantha from a breeder in our neighborhood in Seattle. She was our guard dog when us kids were out in the yard without Mom. Once, she even chased off a homeless guy who kept walking up to me and my sister!Forums Motto:Crossed the Rainbow Bridge. 3I've Been On Dogster Since:

Sammy's Diary

In August, my parents had Sam outside with them. It was a beautiful summer night, the sun settin gbehind the trees. Sam had been playing with her dog-friend Lacey all day while the dads worked on a car in the garage. Neither dog ever left the yard without a person.... Until that night. My parents went inside to clean up the kitchen before they called everyone in to go to bed, and when they came back outside, Sam was gone. They were inside for less than ten minutes. We walked all over the neighborhood, calling for Sam. Lacey was laying on the porch. It seemed that Sam had just disappeared into thin air! As soon as the sun was fully set, the coyotes in the watershed gully below us started howling. My dad's face went sheet white, my mom started to cry. We all knew Sam was gone for good.

We posted hundreds of flyers, anyway, just in case. Three false leads that led us in a giant circle around my parents' house. Finally, we just had to let go. We were all a giant mess, none of us could stop crying. It was time to put her to rest in our hearts and minds, since we hadn't found a trace of Samantha anywhere after she disappeared.

I have one of her tennis balls sitting on my bookshelf next to a picture I have of her.

My thought is that my Uncle's dog, Cosmo came to lead her to the Rainbow Bridge. Cosmo died in May after a long battle with bladder cancer. They were best friends. I feel like she knew it was time for her to go, and Cosmo came to lead her Home to God over the Rainbow Bridge. I know she's happy and not in pain and is watching me raise my new puppy, Boomer, who was born exactly one week after Sam left us. I was there the day my stepdad's dog gave birth, and I saw Boomer be born. As soon as I saw his deep brown eyes and glossy gold fur, I knew Sam and Cosmo had sent him to me, because she had deep brown eyes and Cosmo was a golden retriever. (Note: This puppy was born from a black and white Pitbull mother and a Black Lab-Collie mix father.

I know we'll all be okay. I know the Sam and Cosmo are playing happily in Heaven. It still hurts though, even after three months of not having Sam around.

Thank you all for being so supportive and helpful. I very much appreciate it.

Mom went to PetSmart today and bought me doggie aspirin and some liver-flavored hip&joint supplements. I'm feeling much better now. My feet still wobble when I walk, but I'm old, so that's okay. Hopefully the supplements will keep making me feel even better. I was able to climb up on the couch in the basement and take a NAP! Whoohoo! I haven't been able to do that for a while, even though it's a really low Roman couch. Mom is also looking into prescription meds for my arthitis and degenerative hip disease (a normal senior GSD complaint, she tells me), but she is very into what she calls "homeopathic remedies," which I take to mean bitter-tasting medicines like Yucca root! But hey, I get a hotdog afterwards, so I guess it's a fair trade. If any of my pup pals have suggestions for Mom, please leave a comment! Thank you for all your support!

Last week, Sam went in for her yearly vet visit, and we discovered that she has arthritis in her hips and knees, as well as hip dysplasia. The vet, after running some more tests, later told us that it's pretty far along, and that the best we can do for her is to make her comfortable. He said that if she starts dragging her hind legs too much, we'll have to euthanize her. I've been crying all week! :(